Identity Crisis
by Comp-User
Summary: Keitaro, two mysterious statues, and a drunk Kitsune. What more do you need? Now COMPLETE!
1. Hollow Statues

Identity Crisis  
Chapter 1: The Hollow Statues  
  
Keitaro busily scrubbed the rocks around the hot spring after yet another harrowing day of studying. He sighed, wiping the drops of sweat off of his forehead and looked up at the setting sun. It was a normal day at Hinata house, everything had gone as expected: Kitsune was lazy, Naru was yelling, and Sarah was wondering when her 'daddy' would come back, when suddenly, a loud crash thundered through the tranquil landscape, followed by a car horn. Keitaro looked up and saw a van that was flipping end-over- end until it landed on its side and ground to a stop against a boulder. Moments later a man reached up and started to crawl out of the driver's window.  
  
"Seta-san!" Keitaro shouted enthusiastically as he rushed to greet the man. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Seta wiped the blood from the gouge on his forehead and grinned. "I just got back from another excavation! How's everything around here? I hope Sarah hasn't."  
  
"Daddy!" Sarah shouted as she launched herself at Seta and wrapped him in a firm hug.  
  
"I hope you've been good, Sarah," Seta said with a wide, knowing grin. "I'll be home for at least a month, hopefully Keitaro won't mind if I take you off his hands for a while. Where is Keitaro, anyway?" Seta asked cluelessly.  
  
"Umm, right here, Seta-san" Keitaro answered disbelievingly, on the verge of a *sweat drop*, that crash must have done more to the archeologist than he thought.  
  
"Ah, how are you, Keitaro?" Seta asked.  
  
"Fine, I guess," Keitaro answered, the threatening *sweat drop* appearing on his head.  
  
"That's good!" Seta replied then scratched his head for a moment as though he were trying to remember something. "Oh, Keitaro, I almost forgot!" Seta said as he jumped on top of the van and slid the side door open, "I got a pair of statues from a strange pacific island. They seem to relate to that "turtle kingdom" I keep finding evidence of." After much rustling and a few dust clouds, Seta lifted out a large crate twice his size and set it on the ground next to the van. "Since my research lab at the university's so crowded, I was hoping you could take care of these statues for me."  
  
"I'll do my best, Seta-san!" Keitaro answered dutifully. Seta then took a crowbar and pried open the crate. As soon as the crate opened, the area seemed to explode with bubble wrap and packing material as it was shoved out of the crate, covering the immediate area. The wrapping fell to the side to reveal two statues, one male, one female, both about 3 feet tall and carved elegantly out of dark wood, both figures sitting on turtles. Keitaro gingerly positioned both statues under his arms and hefted them up. "Whoa, these are pretty light!" Keitaro exclaimed amazedly as both statues lifted off of the ground like a child's play thing.  
  
"Strange, isn't it, Keitaro?" Seta said as he took out a handkerchief and wiped the blood off his forehead. "I'm guessing these figurines are hollow on the inside, yet for what purpose I'm not sure." Seta grinned and turned to Sarah. "Now Sarah, will you be a good girl?"  
  
Sarah was sitting on top of a pile of bubble wrap from the crate, protecting its precious cargo, merrily popping the packaging. "Yeah, sure," the girl said, engrossed in her new hobby of creating patterns out of the deflated bubbles.  
  
"Wish I'd thought of that," Keitaro muttered to himself, eyeing Sarah warily.  
  
"What's that, Keitaro?" Seta asked the ronin absent-mindedly.  
  
"Nothing, Seta-san," Keitaro answered as he carried the two statues into his room.  
  
***  
  
A few hours later, after a festive party the girls insisted on throwing for Seta's return, Keitaro weakly swept the floor. "Girls are bigger slobs than guys," Keitaro muttered to himself, "especially when they know someone else will clean up after them." He thought back on the parties of old and remembered various moments in which Kitsune got spectacularly sloshed and tried to sing karaoke. Fortunately, the other girls stopped her before she could start an encore, but the amusing memory stayed with him.  
  
The young ronin got on his knees and reached underneath the table to pull out an empty bottle. "That Kitsune, not a care in the world except for the next drink." Keitaro grumbled, griping about his lot in life. Of course, he knew he wasn't really mad at the girls, they really helped him shape up his grades in the last year, and he appreciated that. However, there was one thing he would like above all else: a vacation.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune stumbled into Keitaro's room with a small bottle of sake in her left hand and her right trying to keep her robe somewhat closed. "Aww. no Keitaro to tease," Kistune pouted, but the expression was soon replaced by a sly grin. She clumsily waded through the young college-hopeful's room, and came face to face with two strange wooden statues. The male statue caught her eye, so she stared at it appreciatively and admired the natives' honesty in carving the human figure. Then, in a true Kitsune gesture, she glanced southward on the figure, "Moshi moshi" she said drunkenly to the wooden figurine. "What's Keitaro doing with such naughty figures in his room?" At that moment, a sly idea came into her head. "I wonder how bad he'd freak if one of these was missing the next morning" the foxy woman pondered aloud.  
Her decision made, Kitsune took a swig from her bottle for extra courage and picked up the hollow wooden statue. She carefully tucked it underneath one arm, and set the empty sake bottle in its place on Keitaro's desk. As stealthily as a drunken woman could, Kitsune snuck out of Keitaro's room and into her own. "Now where to hide it?" the girl pondered mischievously. "Oh! I know the perfect place," Kitsune said rather loudly, she carefully hid the statue then stumbled to her futon and collapsed onto the spread in a drunken giggle and drifted to sleep.  
  
***  
  
Keitaro toweled off his now clean, exhausted arms after what seemed like hours of picking up and scrubbing at the house. Wearily he looked at the clock and saw it was 1:38 AM, "Just great." Keitaro said to himself, bitter about the whole ordeal. "It's a good thing there's a few weeks of vacation left." He slid open his bedroom door and staggered in, with little regard to the cleanliness of his own room, Keitaro shrugged off his pants and shirt and collapsed onto his futon in a sleep that even Naru couldn't wake.  
  
***  
  
Morning seemed to come too quickly for Keitaro. With a disgruntled groan, the weary ronin fought consciousness, but emerged from its sweet embrace despite the best efforts available. A nagging headache throbbed heavily, fogging Keitaro's concentration. 'Uggh, what a horrible headache,' Keitaro thought, barely able to form the words through the piercing agony. 'I really shouldn't have tried to enter that drinking contest, even if I stopped at three cups of sake,' the ronin added to lament. In a daze of confusion, Keitaro rolled to one side and shoved an arm against the futon below. As steadily as Keitaro's compromised equilibrium would allow, the young Tokyo University hopeful stood upright, only to stumble slightly the floor of the room seemed to shift and jump. After Keitaro was somewhat steadier on weary feet and a little more confident that a fall wasn't imminent, the ronin waddled to the door and slid it open.  
  
Keitaro took two independent steps forward before the stumbling began again and a churning from the stomach's pit made itself known. 'I feel horrible,' was the thought that flittered through the ronin's mind as Keitaro clutched the sidewall, desperately trying not to fall. With gelatin-legs, Keitaro opened the bathroom door and nearly fell in.  
  
'First thing's first,' the young ronin decided, positioning in front of the toilet and lifting the lid and seat. Then, the ronin rested one arm against the bathroom wall and used the other to pull down the underwear. Next, Keitaro reached below to take care of the business on hand, only for the said hand to meet air. Frustrated, Keitaro looked down to see what the problem was and gasped in horror. What greeted Keitaro's gaze were two prominent mounds of flesh contained in a baby T-shirt that blocked the ronin's view of the lower quarters. 'What the hell?' Keitaro's mind thought in confusion and looked forward and saw a glimpse from the sink's mirror of Konno 'Kitsune' Mitsune with her panties pulled down to her knees. 'This. this isn't POSSIBLE' Keitaro's mind protested. 'I think. I'm going to be sick!' was added a moment later as undigested alcohol seethed and a sudden surge of bile rose up Keitaro's throat. As quickly as possible, Keitaro kneeled down to the toilet and puked the contents of Kitsune's stomach out.  
  
"Is this. some kind of cruel joke?" Keitaro muttered in Kitsune's weak, tired voice.  
  
***  
  
Meanwhile, in Keitaro's room, Kitsune woke up rather refreshed. The girl blinked her eyes but the world was still all a blur, "What the hell is this?" Kitsune muttered, then gasped as the strange, male voice echoed in her ears. Kitsune reached to the side of the futon and found a pair of glasses. With a casual motion, the glasses were slid over the eyes and everything was brought back into focus.  
  
Kitsune stood up and looked in a mirror to see Urashima Keitaro looking back. "Oh great," Kitsune muttered, "how did that idiot do this?" However, the sheer humor of the situation didn't escape Kitsune as several hilarious and rather lewd ideas came to the fore in her mind. "Hmm, I wonder." Kitsune pondered as she pulled out the rim of Keitaro's boxers and looked down. "Why hello there," Kitsune said with a sideways grin as she fought back laughter.  
  
***  
  
Ten minutes later, Naru rolled up her futon and set it to the side after she finished preparing for the day ahead. She recalled hearing Keitaro on the floor below her waking up not 10 minutes ago. 'That Keitaro, he must've slept in just because we're on vacation,' Naru thought, exasperated. With good humored frustration, Naru removed the floor panel leading to Keitaro's room.  
  
"Hey Keitaro, I was wondering if." Naru paused as she looked down and saw Keitaro's body in a rather. private moment. Her mind shivered in horror as Naru grabbed the nearest thing to her, which was a rather thick textbook. "Keitaro, you PERVERT!"  
  
Kitsune looked up and saw Naru wielding a large book and stopped his actions as quickly as possible. "Naru!" Kitsune shouted, "Wait, I'm not.!" Kitsune grabbed his throat in horror. Her new voice-box had choked up and gagged him, just as Kistune was going to reveal her true identity.  
  
"What, you're NOT a pervert?!" Naru shouted as she threw the book. *WHAM*, the book smashed against Kitsune's now ridiculously thick cranium, sending the new boy, caught with his pants down, flying into the far wall.  
  
"So much for having fun with this situation." Kistune grumbled.  
  
***  
"Uggh, how much did she drink?" Keitaro grumbled in agony as the last of Kistune's stomach contents finally left him in a dribble of brown fluid. Keitaro, now more awake and less dizzy, stood up weakly and flushed the toilet. 'Ok, do NOT panic,' Keitaro thought. 'There's a perfectly reasonable explanation to all of. oh god, how does she walk with these things?' Keitaro took a step forward towards the sink and stumbled, Kitsune's panties, which were still wrapped around her knees easily tripped up the still unfamiliar Keitaro. With quick reflexes, Keitaro grabbed the side of the sink and avoided falling face-first onto the bathroom floor.  
  
With even more care, Keitaro once again stood up completely and noticed the cause of the trip. "Oops," Keitaro said nervously as he slipped the panties back up, making special care to NOT look at the area they were going to protect. "This is going to take some getting used to," Keitaro muttered as she leaned forward to get face to face to the mirror, and then felt his new bosom resting against the sink and looked down at the mounds. "A LOT of getting used to." 


	2. Workin for a Livin

Chapter 2, Day 1, Workin' for a Livin'  
  
"This isn't fun at all," Kitsune muttered as she carefully nursed the new bump on her new, thankfully thicker, skull. "Damn you Keitaro, how did you do this?" the recently-made boy hissed as he got dressed in Keitaro's rather bland clothing while noting the blisters and calluses on his hands. It was going to be a long day.  
  
Kitsune slowly slid the bedroom door open and poked her head out of the gap in the shoji. She looked to the left and to the right, trying to see if the coast was clear. A sigh of relief left Kitsune as she slid the door open the rest of the way and stepped out. 'Got to get to my room and make sure Keitaro isn't ruining my image,' the girl thought to herself, 'assuming of course that it's Keitaro in my body.' However, she was stopped when she saw Motoko emerge from around the corner, the sword on her hip held firmly in her hand.  
  
"Urashima," Motoko said in her usual, formal greeting. "Have you forgotten your duties?"  
  
"What. duties?" Kitsune asked apprehensively, a sense of doom looming ominously over her head.  
  
Motoko sighed in exasperation, "The morning rice isn't cooked, the hot springs need to be scrubbed, and the windows on the second floor have been neglected for too long." The kendo girl stepped up closer to the person she believed was Keitaro and added, "It IS your duty as landlord to take care of these chores is it not? I'd hate it if we have to talk about the use of force." To emphasize her point, Motoko pressed her thumbnail between her sword's sheath and hilt and freed an inch of the blade from its secure scabbard.  
  
Kitsune winced and looked at both Motoko's stern face and her partially unsheathed weapon before resigning herself to a day of compliance. "I'll get started right away." Kitsune answered in defeat, shoulders slumped as she started to walk off towards the kitchen.  
  
***  
  
'I know I keep thinking this, but this IS too weird,' Keitaro thought to himself while still practically glued to the bathroom mirror. 'At least Kitsune's eyesight is better than mine,' Keitaro added, 'but it feels like something crawled in her mouth and died.' To emphasize the point, Keitaro gagged and saw the rather comedic image in the mirror of Kitsune's body gagging as well, 'I guess I'd better brush her teeth, I wouldn't want her blaming me for cavities, but..' The poor boy turned woman reached for the toothbrush rack and paused, thinking desperately. 'Should I use her toothbrush or mine? I COULD use Kitsune's but who knows where it's been. If I use mine, than whatever's in Kitsune's mouth will stick to my toothbrush.' With a twinge of disgust of using someone else's toothbrush, regardless of the fact that he was currently in ownership of said person's mouth, Keitaro took Kitsune's toothbrush and applied a large layer of toothpaste on the bristles.  
  
"Well, here goes," Keitaro sighed aloud, then stuck the toothbrush into his new mouth started a furious brushing motion. The paste covered bristles ran over the teeth, scrubbing off the layer of grime and dirt left from the night before. As Keitaro kept the motion going with one arm, he reached for a small paper cup and filled it up to the brim with water from the sink. Then, Keitaro brought the cup up to his lips and drank the cold water, swishing the liquid between his cheeks to ensure the toothpaste's remaining mass would eradicate whatever foul tasting remnants there were. The swishing soon graduated into a gurgling action and seconds later, Keitaro bent down.  
  
As soon as Keitaro bent down to spit out the liquid in his mouth, he looked into the mirror and saw Kitsune's body bending down, her baby T shirt open just enough to show Kitsune's ample cleavage. Instantly, Keitaro spat out the toothpaste water all over the mirror and immediately felt his cheeks grow hot, 'Damn it, I should stand up. I mean, I SHOULDN'T be looking down Kitsune's shirt, I mean.' the ronin started berating himself for staring, yet couldn't help but revel in the image despite his guilt. How many times in his life was he going to see this? However, Keitaro's morals won this round, barely, and the youth stood upright once again. The sight when standing up wasn't as immediately alluring as the cleavage shot, but it was still a lot to take.  
  
Kitsune's body was wearing a white baby T-shirt (now somewhat damp with tooth-paste water) that barely covered her chest, yet showed the whole, firm mid-drift area. The lower half of her body was concealed by nothing more than a pair of black satin panties. However revealing, a part of Keitaro's mind was grateful for what little concealment the underwear offered, with anymore visual stimulation, his brain was likely to overload. 'I should put some clothes on before I do something I'll regret,' Keitaro thought as he mechanically turned away from the mirror and the provocative image it displayed, and walked to the door. Keitaro's mind reeled with the strange sensations as his first steps were taken in his new body. His new hips swung violently with each step and the new weights on his chest made themselves known with every movement, any attempts to walk with his usual balance was thwarted by the female figure of his new body. A few cautious, experimental steps later, Keitaro had the hang of things and was swaying back and forth with-somewhat-less-than-practiced ease, but he was walking nonetheless. 'So girls HAVE to walk like this,' Keitaro thought to himself, feeling enlightened.  
  
As nonchalantly as was possible for a young ronin in a womans body, Keitaro slipped back into Kitsune's room. "Thank goodness," Keitaro said in relief as he leaned against the door and slid down to a sitting position, half expecting someone to march through the door to give him a concussion. "Guess I better put something on that's more than. this," the ronin said as he took some careful steps to Kitsune's dresser. Bravely, Keitaro slid open the top drawer and his eyes almost exploded out of his skull when he saw several black lingerie pieces among other. unique items. 'W-what the heck? I never knew she had these!' The blush grew tin staggering amounts as Keitaro quickly shut that drawer and opened the next one.  
  
The second drawer held more practical pieces of underwear and a few T- shirts. 'I guess this is good for now,' Keitaro pondered as he heaved a sigh of relief and selected an extra large T-shirt and a white bra. The third drawer held several pairs of cut-off jean shorts and panties of varying colors and styles. Keeping his simple look in mind, Keitaro grabbed a pair of jean shorts and plain white cotton panties and set them with the T-shirt and bra selected earlier on top of the dresser.  
  
'Now for the hard part,' the boy thought as he walked in front of Kitsune's full-length mirror. With wavering hands, Keitaro reached for the hem of the baby T-shirt and pulled the shirt up, only to be immediately confronted with unexpected resistance. 'That's right, I have these. things,' passed through Keitaro's mind as he pulled up again, trying to use the baby T-shirt's elastic properties to the best of their abilities. The second try yielded better results and the shirt slipped over Keitaro's new chest and over his head. Then, the garment was brought forward and Keitaro slipped both of his new, slender arms out of the shirt and the article of clothing finally fell to the floor.  
  
"Oh god." were the words that escaped Keitaro as he looked in the mirror and saw the topless Kitsune looking back. He knew he shouldn't stare, but it was just so rare a privilege to be able to see this without risk of immediate retribution. After almost a minute of staring, Keitaro immediately turned away from the mirror. "Okay, I should NOT get too excited over this. I shouldn't!" was the harsh mantra Keitaro repeated out loud to try and temper his arousal. With nervous arms, Keitaro reached for the bra and slipped the puzzling undergarment over his new chest, hiding the alluring image which captivated him a moment before. "How does this thing work?" Keitaro mumbled as he fumbled with the clasp behind his back for a few seconds before finally getting it to hook. He felt more constrained, and almost uncomfortable before his new body adjusted to the support even as the under-wires pinched his sides.  
  
'Now for step two.' Keitaro reached down and hooked the band of the panties over his thumbs and pulled the black satin undergarment down. The panties slipped down below the knees and Keitaro fiercely kicked them off his feet. With eyes locked firmly on the ceiling, Keitaro reached for the white cotton panties and carefully stepped into them then pulled them up to cover an area he was quite not ready to look at. 'Finally,' the boy thought as he grabbed the extra large T-shirt and slipped it over his head. The shirt loosely fit over his new torso comfortably and next the jean shorts were slipped up. 'Is it just me, or are these tight?' was the question on Keitaro's mind as he squirmed into the shorts and zipped them up with some difficulty.  
  
With great hesitation, Keitaro peeked into Kitsune's full-length mirror to see the end result of his clothing choices. 'This isn't so bad...' Keitaro thought, seeing Kitsune wearing a T-shirt and jean shorts. 'What am I thinking? This is KITSUNE'S body! She could make a nun's habit look sexy! I'm doomed!'  
  
***  
  
After a few failed attempts, Kitsune was finally able to cook a suitable pot of rice for breakfast. 'I guess I can have a break now,' the girl thought as she sat down at the table.  
  
"Urashima, have you forgotten your other duties?" Motoko asked as she walked into the kitchen.  
  
"Can't I have a few minutes to eat?" Kitsune whined, tired after her kitchen fiasco.  
  
"Do not worry, Urashima," Motoko answered, "we will leave you a meal once the hot springs are cleaned."  
  
"Fineeee," Kitsune grumbled as she got up and walked to Keitaro's room to put on his scrubbing clothes. However, as she reached Keitaro's door, she came face to face with her old body.  
  
Both cursed people locked nervous, surprised gazes on each other. Though they were expecting the other person in their own body, to be confronted by the evidence is another thing entirely. "Umm, you see." Keitaro began nervously.  
  
"What? I just want to know how you got us into this mess," she snapped irately, "and you should put on something a bit better than THAT!"  
  
"I'd rather not." Keitaro confessed sheepishly.  
  
"What, afraid you'll like what you'd see?" Kitsune said with a leer that did not suit Keitaro's features.  
  
"Umm, yes, I mean no, I mean." Keitaro stammered, not knowing what to say.  
  
"Urashima, the baths are waiting!" Motoko announced from the far end of the hallway, brandishing her blade.  
  
"All right already!" Kitsune shouted back. The girl turned boy then slid open the door and said to Keitaro, "We have to have a conversation about reimbursement."  
  
Keitaro sighed and leaned against the wall and watched his former body enter his old bedroom swaggering with Kitsune style confidence, he was going to pay for this. A few moments of peace had passed when Naru came down the stairs and saw who she thought was Kitsune.  
  
"Kitsune, can I talk to you?" the girl asked.  
  
"Umm, sure," Keitaro answered, seeing no harm in a conversation with Naru.  
  
"Good," Naru said as she grabbed Keitaro's arm and dragged the boy turned woman up to her room on the second floor.  
  
The two sat down on the floor and Naru looked down at her hands. "Kitsune, I'm not sure what to think of Keitaro anymore." the girl began. "I mean, he's pretty harmless most of the time and he's actually pretty fun to be around, but when I checked on him earlier, I saw him, well." Naru paused as a deep blush colored her cheeks.  
  
"Yes?" Keitaro asked, wondering what exactly Kitsune did to his body.  
  
"He was. well, you know, the same thing he did his first day here," Naru answered.  
  
Keitaro's mind blanched remembering the incident with perfect clarity. 'She told KITSUNE about that?!?! Wait. she tried to do that in MY BODY?!' a thousand and five things flashed in Keitaro's mind, not the least of which was a prayer to save his reputation as he tried to think of something to say. "Well, it's a natural thing, really," Keitaro said.  
  
"You think so?" Naru asked tentatively.  
  
"Umm, sure!" Keitaro answered. "I mean everyone does it." 'Everyone does it? What kind of answer is that?'  
  
"You sure?" Naru questioned again.  
  
"Yeah!" Keitaro answered, nodding his head vigorously. Then genius struck him. He was in Kitsune's body, why not act like Kitsune? "You must've done it a few times too, right?"  
  
"Well, yeah, occasionally." Naru admitted shyly. "But I never let anyone catch me! And I NEVER did it that early in the morning!"  
  
"Well, then there's no issue," Keitaro said as he stood up, grinning with devious joy because he'd avoided yet another Naru related disaster.  
  
"Well, thanks for the chat, Kitsune," Naru said warmly as she too stood up and gave Keitaro a hug. Keitaro's mind froze as he felt Naru's breasts collide with his own, making him blush.  
  
'Oh god, oh god, oh god, this feels. different.' With nerves of steel and a stomach full of butterflies, Keitaro reached around and returned the hug for a brief minute., praying that he wouldn't get clobbered. Seconds later, Keitaro broke off the hug and took several nervous steps out of Naru's room. "Well, see you at breakfast," Keitaro said as he left the floor and went back downstairs.  
  
***  
  
"Stupid stubborn rocks," Kistune muttered as she pressed the bristles of the brush harder against the stone's stains, scouring the algae off of them. The tired tenant wiped the bead of sweat off her new brow and looked back at the main house. Sounds of everyone else enjoying their breakfast echoed out into the hot springs area making her supremely jealous. After a moment of reflection, Kitsune gripped the handle even harder and pressed the brush against the stains once more.  
  
After tireless minutes, the hot springs were finally clean enough and Kitsune tiredly walked back into the house. 'First thing I'd do when I get a free minute is drain Keitaro's bank account,' the devious girl thought. She slid the kitchen door open and saw a still warm breakfast labeled 'For Keitaro' sitting on the counter and a pile of dirty dishes in the sink, obviously 'For Keitaro' as well. 'Keitaro better have A LOT of money in his bank account,' Kitsune thought viciously.  
  
***  
  
One of the few things Keitaro could never deal with was boredom. Another was temptation. Being in Kitsune's body conveniently presented both dilemmas for the overtaxed boy. 'There must be a clue to this body swapping somewhere,' Keitaro pondered as he searched Kitsune's pig-sty of a room for clues. After 10 minutes and finding nothing but nosebleed inducing mess and dirty laundry, Keitaro gave up the search in that room.  
  
Keitaro stood in front of the door to his old room feeling impervious in Kitsune's body. 'If there's a clue, it might be in here,' he deduced. With firm resolve, Keitaro slid the door open and stepped in. An immediate visual survey showed only after a few hours, Kitsune's wild lifestyle was beginning to reflect itself in his bedroom. Clothes were strewn about and textbooks were haphazardly flung around. However, one thing immediately caught Keitaro's eye as he saw the desk and that only ONE of the statues Seta had entrusted him with was left sitting there: the female statue.  
  
Quickly, Keitaro got to his old desk and saw a half empty sake bottle sitting where the male statue once was. 'So its her fault, not mine,' Keitaro concluded, a strange sense of joy overwhelming him. Whether to save his reputation, or out of sheer habit, Keitaro picked up the half empty sake bottle and then saw several pieces of paper on the desk that looked as though they were stuck to the bottom of the purloined statue. Keitaro picked up the sticky notes and crumpled sheets of paper with his free hand and saw that scribbled on the papers were many strange glyphs and translation work that appeared to be Seta's.  
  
Several glyph phrases had one or two words translated. From one page, Keitaro could make out 'Change **** week ***** traits shall stay.' On another, the ronin could barely make out 'Broken ***** permanent if it ****** sacrifice.' Keitaro rolled his eyes, Seta's handwriting got worse with every visit, and the state of the papers didn't help.  
  
"That doesn't sound good," Keitaro mused. With the bundle in one hand and the bottle in the other, Keitaro quickly left his old room to try and make sense of Seta's scribblings. The ronin walked back into Kitsune's room and cleared off a large enough portion of the floor to sit down on and spread the sheets for further examination, almost subconsciously Keitaro, set the bottle of sake to his side and begun to look at the sheets. The first two sheets he pushed to the side and picked up a third. The jumbled glyphs had yet another partially translated phrase which read 'Hollow ***** souls *** stolen *** understanding'. "Well, THAT makes a lot of sense," Keitaro mumbled sarcastically fishing for a meaning in the madness.  
  
After a few more minutes of useless staring at the paper, Keitaro felt exhausted mentally and emotionally and looked at the half empty bottle to his side. "Well, what could a sip hurt?" Keitaro asked himself as he picked up the bottle. Cautiously, Keitaro brought the bottle to his lips and tipped it slightly, taking a small sip of sake. The alcohol burned a path from Keitaro's mouth down to his stomach, leaving him warm and tingly, as though he were reunited with a long lost friend.  
  
The taste of sake wasn't as foul as Keitaro remembered. In fact, the small amount in his stomach appeared to settle his nerves a bit. "I can see why she likes this stuff," Keitaro said enthusiastically as he held up the bottle and reluctantly capped it before the urge to finish it off won over logic. It was a very strong urge.  
  
***  
  
The sun was setting and Kitsune walked back into Keitaro's room with heavy feet. "Keitaro needs a fortune to repay me for this," Kitsune mumbled as she collapsed on Keitaro's futon. 


	3. Trials and Research

Chapter 3: Trials and Research  
  
Keitaro woke groggily and rolled onto his back, searching for his glasses. He'd had the strangest dream, though why he'd dream about switching bodies with Kitsune was beyond him, especially since the dream didn't have him taking advantage of the situation. Opening his eyes he found an unfamiliar ceiling. Keitaro bolted up right in bed and felt an unfamiliar jiggling on his chest and panted in fear, 'It wasn't a dream?' he thought, panicking, 'I'm in Kitsune's body?! SHIT! Maybe I should just stay in bed and try to sleep through this.'  
  
However, the ronin knew not even sleep would allow him to escape the strangeness of this new reality, he would probably have nightmares. Wearily, Keitaro stood up out of bed and immediately began squirming, trying to discover the source of a nagging discomfort: his bra was twisted, and was pressing against his new busom. 'Damn, I thought it was a good idea. how do girls sleep in these things?'' he asked himself as he stood in front of Kitsune's mirror and saw the somewhat blurry image of a woman wearing an extra large T-Shirt that reached just passed her thighs.  
  
Keitaro remembered the logic of his nightwear decision with perfect clarity, agreeing with it despite its obvious shortcomings. Had he exposed too much of Kitsune's bare skin, he would surely have driven his libido insane. Yet as Keitaro fumbled to straighten out the twisted bra he couldn't ignore the rather ripe stench that seemed to emanate from his borrowed flesh, or the oily feeling of his new feminine hair. One thing was obvious: Keitaro would have to bathe today.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune woke up rather early and once again dressed in Keitaro's rather plain and unflattering clothing. Today the misplaced girl would begin to reap retribution from Keitaro as a payment for the whole situation. 'Today shall be only a taste of my fee,' Konno Mitsune thought, cackling as she picked up Keitaro's wallet and flipped it open and saw that his ID and bankcard were, thankfully, still there. Once again a rather mischievous grin creased Kitsune's new features  
  
'These shoes are just horrible,' Kitsune complained as she pulled on Keitaro's worn and discolored footwear. The relocated girl then grabbed Keitaro's backpack, nonchalantly unzipped it, and unceremoniously dumped its contents on the floor.  
  
"Well, good thing no one else is awake yet," Kitsune muttered as she stepped over a pack of condoms and out of Keitaro's room. She quickly dashed out of Hinata with plans for compensation in mind.  
  
***  
  
Minutes later, Keitaro carefully slid open the door to Kitsune's room and scanned both directions of the hallway. Satisfied that the corridor was clear, Keitaro took a precarious step out of the sanctuary that was Kitsune's room with a change of clothes and a towel in hand. After sneakily crossing ten meters, he finally reached the hot springs. 'Well, here goes,' was the reluctant thought that slid through Keitaro's mind as he slipped the oversized T-shirt off his new torso, trying to be as chaste as possible.  
  
As with the first day, the shirt met resistance on the uptake. The struggle persisted for a second as Keitaro remembered the lessons of the day before and successfully slipped the shirt off. Next he slid her underwear off and before he knew it, Keitaro was once again nude in Kitsune's body. Of course, Keitaro's nobler side won any debate as Keitaro kept his eyes focused squarely forward, not willing to take advantage of either Kitsune's better eyesight or her body at the moment. Man, how he wanted to look down...  
  
Keitaro grabbed the basket full of soaps and brushes and a towel with the other arm and proceeded into the blessedly vacant hot springs area. Keitaro washed his new body as quickly as possible, trying not to imagine where his hands were spreading soap. After dumping bucket after bucket of cold water on his head, he stepped into the blissful heat of the Hinata baths. The boy hadn't been allowed in the baths, ever - every time he found himself in the steamy water, the experience had ended in pain, now he had time to enjoy himself.  
  
The warm steamy waters seemed to envelope Keitaro's new curves as he sunk in. It was a feeling that far surpassed the relaxation of any normal warm bath Keitaro ever experienced. A sigh escaped him as he leaned back onto the rocks and let the water soothe his worries away. However, his peace and tranquility was quickly interrupted as the door slid open and pattering footsteps made more arrivals announced.  
  
A great sense of dread overtook Keitaro's spirit and the boy quickly swiveled his head to see both Naru and Motoko in the nude. Quickly, Keitaro dived under the water praying that the steamy springs would conceal him. Just as he submerged his head, he looked down and realized he had no reason to fear punishment for using the girl's baths. Cautiously, Keitaro raised his head from the water and saw Naru and Motoko looking at him curiously.  
  
"Oh, heh, the rush helps wake me up," Keitaro explained weakly.  
  
"You must have gone to bed half drunk again Kitsune," Motoko surmised wisely as she lowered herself.  
  
"Yeah, you know me, always getting hammered," Keitaro said with a nervous laugh, trying to keep his mind and eyes off his new bath-mates.  
  
"Kitsune, you didn't have any this morning, did you?" Naru asked, concerned as she drifted closer to Keitaro. Keitaro wavered a small glance at Naru's supple form and quickly looked away.  
  
"Oh, no no!" Keitaro answered nervously with another chuckle, feeling heat rise into his cheeks. "It's not even 10 A.M. yet!"  
  
"Well. okay." Naru relented. Then, a good spirited smile creased on Naru's lips as she looked at Keitaro appraisingly. "How do you keep that body, Kitsune?"  
  
'Ack! Actually she lost it!' Keitaro thought to himself, the joke corny even in his ears. "Well, ya know, hard work and exercise," Keitaro answered vaguely.  
  
"But your breasts are so big!" Naru said and emphasized by grabbing the still alien appendages on Keitaro's chest and giving them a gentle squeeze. Keitaro jerked as his spine tingled at the sensation of Naru's hands all over his bosom and his face grew even redder while his new body reacted favorably to the stimulation. Naru quickly noticed the evident change that was within her hands and looked at whom she thought was Kitsune with more scrutiny. "Are you sure you didn't have anything to drink yet? Either that, or they've grown," the longhaired beauty pondered as she felt around some more.  
  
"H-hey now!" Keitaro objected weakly and looked at Naru nervously while covering his bust from any further pawing. "What about Motoko? Hers are getting pretty big too!"  
  
"You're right!" Naru said with an enlightened smile before she grabbed Keitaro's hand and dragged him over next to Motoko.  
  
"I will not participate in this juvenile comparison," Motoko said hurriedly with a red face.  
  
"Too late!" Naru said as she grabbed one of the Kendo girl's breasts and pushed Keitaro's hand on the other.  
  
'Oh god. it's so soft.' Keitaro thought as he closed his eyes as he tried to keep his mind from wandering. 'Wait a minute! Its Motoko's breast! Please oh god, don't hurt me!'  
  
"AIIIEEE, quit it!" Motoko shrieked as she brushed away both invading hands. Keitaro brought his new hand back and cracked his eyes open to see Motoko still shielding her chest looking nervously at both him and Naru. All the incredible contact with bare flesh and the tantalizing images were too much for Keitaro's brain. The whole bath had gotten his blood boiling in more ways than one. A strange fluttering in his lower abdomen overwhelmed him, and suddenly, he had to leave.  
  
"Excuse me!" Keitaro shouted as he jumped out of the baths still dripping, then grabbed a towel and hurried back into the house.  
  
The two remaining girls looked at each other questioningly for a second. "What?" Motoko asked rhetorically, "Even I occasionally forget to visit the restrooms before the springs."  
  
***  
  
Kitsune snuck back into the Hinata house with a full wallet and several new tabs at local bars started in Keitaro's name for the awaited return to her own flesh. She also made it a point to have several pieces of clothing for her old body that she had her eye on ordered, once again in Keitaro's name, to be delivered in three weeks.  
  
She looked around in the hallway and bent down to pry open a panel in the living room floor that she knew was hollow underneath. Sure enough the bottles of sake she'd stashed there long ago were still sitting undisturbed. Kitsune deftly reached into her back pocket and withdrew the wallet that was now in her possession and opened it. With a delighted flick of her wrist, she pulled out the thick wads of Keitaro's savings and slipped them into a zip-lock bag before dropping the bag into the hollow area beneath the floor with the sake. Another quick look around and Kitsune slipped the panel back over the spot and secured it in place.  
  
'I guess it's still early,' Kitsune mused as she stood up and walked into Keitaro's room. 'Oh well, I guess a nice bath in the hot springs would feel good, even in this body,' the transformed girl surmised as she grabbed Keitaro's bathing gear and a change of clothes.  
  
Kitsune walked into the changing room and didn't take notice of the kendo garb or Naru's pajamas, not realizing that her course of action could be potentially dangerous. The girl slipped off what she still considered Keitaro's ugly clothing and slid the door that led to the springs open.  
  
The results were immediate as the formerly chatting Naru and Motoko turned to the opening door and were confronted by who they perceived as Keitaro displaying full frontal nudity. "I- well, that is I didn't know anyone else was-" Kitsune explained weakly to the two angry glares that stared her in the face. One look at the two angry girls and she realized her error too late.  
  
***  
  
The battle cries of "Keitaro you pervert!" and "Urashima, you shall die for this!" echoed throughout the Hinata. Keitaro scarcely acknowledged the screams and explosions that seemed to echo around the house. The scene was quite surreal as Keitaro sat in a near-trance with the chaos of Hinata ensuing around him. Keitaro sat on a futon in Kitsune's room wearing nothing but the same oversized T-shirt he used as a nightgown the day before, just staring down at his new hands.  
  
'Why. why did I do that?' the boy thought as he reflected on his actions a few minutes back. 'How can I ever look any of the girls in the face again after what I just did?' He tried to reason it as need; a biological impulse that was beyond his control. Then he remembered that Naru caught Kitsune trying to do the same thing the day before. The reasoning helped, yet the utter guilt that lingered dampened what were once joyful spirits mere minutes before.  
  
He looked back into the mirror and saw Kitsune looking back with guilt and fear her eyes and he tried to compose himself a bit. It was unbecoming for Kitsune to look guilty. At that moment, the door slid open and a once again dressed Kitsune walked back into her old room wearing Keitaro's old body complete with the compliment of bruises, courtesy of Naru and Motoko.  
  
"What's got you down in the dumps? I'm the one they beat to a pulp," Kitsune muttered waspishly.  
  
"I did something. wrong," Keitaro whispered, head down.  
  
"Oh?" Kistune asked. "What did you do that was so wrong?" She then looked at the confused boy in her body and his wardrobe. "Ohhh, so you took Anatomy 101, eh? Well, don't feel too bad. No man could resist that body."  
  
"You're not mad?" Keitaro asked, heartened, as he looked Kitsune in the eyes.  
  
"Oh yes I am, you're not getting away with it that easily." Kitsune responded. "I said I understood, that doesn't mean you get free reign to mess around with my body."  
  
"What do I have to do?" Keitaro said, resigned to the fact that he'd have to do something to pay Kitsune back for her. services.  
  
"Well. I had my eyes on this cute Vespa, if I have it before October, that'd be fine," Kitsune answered. "Oh, and that means I need a matching riding wardrobe and goggles too! Since we're like this, that means you get to see if the clothes will fit, and remember, the colors I look best in are red and blue. Speaking of clothes."  
  
Keitaro's guilt drained away as the list of items to 'make it right' got steadily longer. "Hey wait a minute," Keitaro objected. "You were fooling around with my thing yesterday, right?"  
  
"Well, you can't blame a girl for trying," Kistune answered weakly. "Call it even?"  
  
"I guess," Keitaro muttered in frustration of the whole situation. "Now you better start on 'your' new chores."  
  
"Yes, we really should talk about compensation of me doing your work," Kistune added slyly as she left the room.  
  
"How do I get into these messes?" Keitaro asked the empty room as he laid back down on the futon.  
  
***  
  
Another day drew to a close as Kitsune was once again put through the rigor of Keitaro's chores while Keitaro sat back in Kitsune's room to watch the sun set. The day was no challenge to Keitaro, seeing as he could practically sit back and watch Kitsune endour the rigors of his daily life. In a way, he missed that life, regardless of the punches, the explosions, the pain, and the agony. During the day, though, a problem presented itself to Keitaro. He was currently dealing with one of the rigors he discovered in Kistune's life: a staring contest. Keitaro's opponent, a half empty bottle of sake, the same he found just a day before. For some strange alien reason, Keitaro seemed to inherit Kitsune's need for the fiery liquid. The clear liquor seemed to beckon to him and the longer he stared, the more he thought about how well it seemed to calm his stomach the day before.  
  
However, to break the staring contest, in the sun a silhouette of a flying van quickly formed and grew. Keitaro looked up in shock and horror as the flipping van soon eclipsed the red sun and hit the ground, only to settle in a roll and stop short of Kitsune's mess of a room.  
  
'Just my luck,' Keitaro thought as he watched the dazed Seta climb out of the open window and contemplated if he should finish off that bottle of sake he'd found earlier. "Hello, Seta-san," Keitaro greeted with a rough deadpan.  
  
"Ah, hello Kitsune!" Seta answered as he hopped off the van. "I left something here a few days before." the professor pondered for a moment as though trying to remember exactly what he'd left behind.  
  
"The statues?" Keitaro ventured.  
  
"No no, still no room for those," Seta replied with a carefree wave. "Oh yes, there were some notes that were left in the crate with the statues!" Seta hopped into Kitsune's room and saw the stack of notes on the floor. "Yes yes, a lot like this! Thank you, Kitsune!" Seta said.  
  
"Ah, about that and the statues, there's something I have to tell you about that," Keitaro said nervously.  
  
"They are intact, right?" Seta asked with concern.  
  
"Well, last I heard," Keitaro answered. "Actually, it's about what the statues do. See, I'm really." Keitaro grabbed his throat and found the words wouldn't leave his mouth. His suspicions were confirmed. 'Think! There should be a way to tell Seta-san!' Keitaro shouted at himself. Then, an idea occurred, 'Of course!' It was childish, rudimentary, but it might just work! Quickly, Keitaro walked back to Seta.  
  
"What is it Kitsune?" Seta asked, bewildered.  
  
"You good with Charades?" Keitaro asked hopefully.  
  
"Well. I tried to play in my college days, but I was never any good at it," Seta confessed.  
  
'Damn!' Keitaro thought, then added, 'but he's my only hope!' "Well, ok. I have something very important to tell you by using charade, so please try!" Keitaro pleaded.  
  
"I'll try," Seta answered, clueless.  
  
Keitaro looped his fingers over his eyes to signify glasses. "First word Naru?" Seta guessed curiously. Keitaro furiously shook his head, then squashed his new breasts flat and did the glasses thing immediately there after. "Ok. first word Naru?" Seta guessed again. Frustrated, Keitaro grabbed a photo album he saw on Kitsune's desk and opened it. He yanked out a picture of his old body and held it up to his chest. "Ok, you're in love with Keitaro!" Seta guessed. Keitaro quickly shook his head 'no' then pointed at the picture and pointed at his new skull. "You think about Keitaro a lot?" Seta guessed again. Keitaro slapped his forehead, for a professor, the man was an imbecile. "You're Keitaro in Kitsune's body and the two of you switched with those statues I gave you?"  
  
A frustrated Keitaro face faulted in the sheer display of Seta being Seta and quickly recovered to nod frantically, "Finally!" Keitaro exclaimed in relief.  
  
"Wow. I mean, wow," Seta said as he sat down on the top of his van to take it all in.  
  
"Tell me about it," Keitaro answered. Seta looked at his scribbled notes and contemplated.  
  
"You know this actually works out rather well!" Seta announced happily, "In fact, there's a colleague at the university who's doing a study about whether or not men or women get the better orga-"  
  
"I'd rather switch back!" Keitaro interrupted hastily as his earlier embarrassment quickly returned.  
  
"But it's in the interest of science, Keitaro," Seta pouted. He saw the look Keitaro shot back and quickly decided it was best to not push it. "Well, I guess I'll be going over these glyphs and see if I can switch you two back."  
  
"Thanks Seta-san," Keitaro said to the professor's back as he jumped back into his van and started the seemingly-immortal vehicle back to life before driving the trundling hunk of metal into the sunset.  
  
"Oh, and Seta-san," Keitaro said quietly, "just so you know, the girls DO get it better!" 


	4. Underwear, Lies, and Empty Bottles

Chapter 4 Underwear, Lies, and Empty Bottles  
  
Kaolla Su stretched like a cat as she woke up in bed late one morning. The girl felt as if she has been inactive for far too long this lazy summer and that she still had a Tama-chan to catch. The strange foreign girl waded through the jungle of her room and quickly got dressed in her school fuku. The girl then slid her door open and stepped out into the hallway and met a load of laundry, followed by a harassed looking Shinobuu. "Hello Shinobu!" Su greeted with her wide, exuberant smile.  
  
"Ah, hello Su," Shinobu replied nervously. Su just grinned and dug her hand into the basket. "Please! Kaolla-san, I just washed those!" Shinobu objected.  
  
"Who's is this?" Su asked innocently as she pulled out of the basket a pair of black lace panties.  
  
Shinobu quickly snatched the article out of the curious Su's hands. "Its Kitsune's of course," the shy girl answered. "Anything that's that black and that lacy is always Kitsune's."  
  
"Whyyy?" Su asked happily.  
  
"Because it makes her look nice I guess?" Shinobu answered delicately.  
  
"Can it work on us too?" the foreign girl asked.  
  
"We aren't. big enough for Kitsune's kind of underwear," Shinobu replied, thinking with no small amount of envy, of Kitsune's voluptuous curves.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune grumbled to herself once again as she continued to scrub the floors of the wooden hallways of Hinata House. The poor girl had to get on Keitaro's hands and knees to scrub the grime and dirt off the wood surfaces. 'He'll pay for this,' Kitsune thought as she started rubbing a particularly stubborn smear on the wood.  
  
"Need some help with that?" Keitaro asked the angry girl in his body. Kitsune shot him a glare.  
  
"No way!" Kitsune angrily objected. "You know how bad it will be for my image if anyone else saw me scrubbing floors? Besides, why do YOU want to help? This is your fault."  
  
"Actually, it was yours," Keitaro said boldly as he leaned against the wall. "It was those wooden statues that did this. It appears you took a liking to one of them and hid it. somewhere,"  
  
"Damn!" Kitsune cursed and took out her new anger on the stains. "But it was just a hunk of wood! How could that do anything?"  
  
"Listen," Keitaro said calmly, "this was just all circumstance, bad luck. We shouldn't blame anyone."  
  
"Says the person that doesn't have to scrub the floors," Kitsune bitterly pointed out. "Look, I have to finish off these floors or Motoko will finish ME off, so we can talk about blame later, okay?"  
  
"Well, if you ever change your mind about the help, you know where to find me," Keitaro said sniffily as he left the hallway and went back into Kitsune's old room.  
  
"Lousy, good for nothing. thinks I can't handle a few chores," Kistune grumbled as she put her back into her work.  
  
"Something wrong Urashima-sempai?" Shinobu asked innocently with her arms supporting the large laundry basket.  
  
"It's nothing, Shinobu," Kitsune replied, sighing heavily. Then Kitsune suddenly felt an incredible weight on her tired back.  
  
"Cheer up Keitaro!" Su said with a wide grin and hooked her fingers into the corner of Kitsune's mouth to its limits, forcing it into the shape of a wide grin. "See? All better!"  
  
Kitsune just cried to herself and let the humiliation continue as she continued to scrub the floor.  
  
***  
  
Naru brushed her hair and gazed into her mirror as she thought about the last couple of days. Things seemed a little off in Hinata and Naru just couldn't place what was peculiar.  
  
Keitaro seemed to be in second gear this summer. Naru reasoned it was because of the stress, besides, Keitaro was entitled to slack off a little. Motoko, however, seemed to disagree.  
  
Kitsune seemed a bit jumpier in the past few days, she hadn't been drinking as much as she used to. Naru never imagined her old friend would attempt to stop drinking, much less go cold turkey and tried to contemplate why she would make such a decision. 'I guess I could ask her,' Naru thought, 'But really, what right do I have to ask such a thing?'  
  
The questions about Kitsune foremost in her thoughts, Naru slid open her door and stepped out into the hallway, only to bump right into Motoko. "Motoko! Oh sorry, I didn't see you!" Naru hastily apologized.  
  
"No need to apologize," Motoko replied. "Have you seen Urashima?"  
  
"Last I saw, Keitaro was downstairs, just finishing up the floors," Naru promptly answered. "Why?"  
  
"Good," Motoko said with a stiff nod. "He has been neglecting his duties as landlord recently. It is nice to see him taking his responsibilities seriously again."  
  
"Motoko-chan, you seem to like it a bit too much when someone obeys you," Naru observed. "I'd feel sorry for your husband - if you ever get married that is,"  
  
"It will not occur anytime soon"  
  
"Don't count guys out, Motoko," Naru said teasingly. "In fact, I bet you could get a lot of dates."  
  
"Men and boys know their place around me," Motoko answered. "Especially if they want to get acquainted with my form of birth control." To emphasize her point, Motoko thumbed her sword free from its scabbard by an inch.  
  
"I REALLY feel sorry for any guy that compliments you," Naru said. "Anyway, You might want to check on Shinobu-chan, she might need some help with the laundry."  
  
***  
  
Keitaro stared at the cleanly folded and pressed pile of Kitsune's clothing that Shinobu just handed him, unsure of what to do with it. Sighing, Keitaro walked to Kitsune's dresser and opened the first drawer; he picked up the small bundle of bras and let his fingertips slide over the fabric. With a shudder, Keitaro placed them as neatly as possible into the drawer, trying hard NOT to imagine how the black lace would look on Kitsune's body, though he could find out in less than 2 minutes.  
  
Next, Keitaro picked up a very familiar looking article: a red turtleneck sweater. Keitaro held it up and remembered how it seemed like Kitsune was glued into this sweater. He held it up to his chest and had to admit it did complement her body well. He put the sweater aside, thinking that it would be best to wear it later and continued to put Kistune's clean laundry away.  
  
Suddenly, almost to interrupt the tranquil moment, a loud honking of a horn was heard in the distance. Keitaro quickly ran to the window and saw Seta's van, once again, making its usual chaotic entrance into Hinata.  
  
Keitaro just sighed and watched the van slowly skid to a halt mere inches away from the actual house. Seconds later, Seta climbed out of the passenger window and spotted Keitaro. "Ah, just who I wanted to talk to," the professor said as he jumped into Kitsune's window.  
  
"So what did you find out?" Keitaro asked, eager to be out of Kitsune's body.  
  
"Quite a lot!" Seta said enthusiastically. "For instance, the wood used for the construction of the statues is quite a common breed of trees. Most island societies believe it holds special magical properties and use it for quite a few ceremonial objects."  
  
"That's all nice and good, Seta-san," Keitaro said, frustrated by his professional zeal, "but what about this particular situation?"  
  
"Ah yes!" Seta said. "The good news is, that the switch seems to only last 7 days. After the 7th day, it should correct itself."  
  
"Thank GOD!" Keitaro exclaimed in relief.  
  
"That's only the good news," Seta pointed out pragmatically.  
  
"What's the bad?" Keitaro asked, dreading what would come.  
  
"It appears," Seta said as he dug through his notes, "that while in Kitsune's body you will have one of her attributes."  
  
"That doesn't sound too bad," Keitaro responded as he almost unknowingly picked up the sake bottle he'd been eyeing for the majority of the day and took a sip. "But I doubt I got one of Kitsune's traits. If I did, I wouldn't even know which." Almost before he finished the statement, Keitaro took another sip, then realized precisely what he was doing and spit out the sake. "What the heck am I doing?!" Keitaro asked himself more than anyone else.  
  
"That appears to be the trait," Seta said, grinning.  
  
"Oh great, I'm an alcoholic," Keitaro grumbled.  
  
"Don't feel too bad," Seta reassured him, "In a few days, it will all be over. That is, if the statues aren't destroyed-"  
  
***  
  
Kitsune, however, was unaware that it would all be over in a few days and continued with Keitaro's chores. She was currently cleaning the windows outside in a harness, heartedly grumbling about her drunken stupidity. A few more swipes of the paper towel and the girl sighed in relief. "Thank goodness that's over," Kitsune said as she carefully grabbed the edge of the window and tried to climb into the house. However, the harness was rather old. Grandmother Hina had considered replacing it for a number of years, but it had worked well for Keitaro numerous times. Today, however, it decided the stress was too and gave way under his weight.  
  
Gravity seemed to grab Kitsune, the hapless woman lurched towards the ground before the band snapped and she descended with a wail. Yet, as luck had it, Kitsune's fall was broken. Unfortunately, the luck was bad, as what broke Kitsune's fall was Motoko. Kitsune looked down, saw the squished Kendo girl beneath her and quickly moved off with lightning speed.  
  
"Oh god, Motoko, I'm so sorry!" Kitsune quickly apologized, bowing deeply. The malicious glint in Motoko's eyes, however, illuminated more clearly Kitsune's predicament. She was in trouble.  
  
"Urashima!!!" Motoko screamed as she started to slowly unsheathe her blade. But, Kitsune's mercurial luck skyrocketed as Naru came to the rescue, she quickly grabbed Motoko's shoulder.  
  
"Motoko-chan, it was an accident!" Naru quickly said. Motoko sighed and took Naru's word for it and pushed the blade back into his sheath.  
  
"Sorry, Urashima," Motoko apologized with a deep bow, "for the confusion."  
  
Kitsune was staring, wide eyed with shock as the younger girl bowed. "I've seen hell." She whimpered inaudibly.  
  
"Umm, excuse us Keitaro," Naru said as she grabbed Motoko by the elbow and dragged the kendo girl a few feet away from Kitsune. The two girls then hurriedly held a conference and seemed to disagree. Then Naru whispered something back and Motoko shuddered before turning her head away from Naru. Finally, Kitsune could hear Naru say, "Good, now ask."  
  
Motoko marched towards Kitsune grudgingly, squaring her shoulders, "Urashima, to correct my earlier behavior, would it be all right if I gave you a - "the proud girl paused, shuddered, then continued, "a massage to alleviate the stress to your back from the fall?"  
  
"Sure, if you want," Kitsune answered.  
  
***  
  
Keitaro rotated his sore shoulder and groaned; earlier, Su tried to play with him as the foreign girl usually did with Kitsune. Kitsune's body seemed more accommodated to Su's usual piggyback rides, but the dirt the girl rolled him in deemed a change in wardrobe, and now Keitaro was wearing Kitsune's signature red sweater.  
  
The day was slowly coming to a close and Keitaro once again felt bored. It was around 6 in the afternoon, yet the mind-numbing hum-drum of Kitsune's daily life left him feeling unsatisfied. Not to mention he finished off that bottle of sake almost immediately after Seta left. The end of that bottle only confirmed what Seta suspected: That Keitaro inherited Kitsune's alcoholic habits.  
  
That in itself wouldn't be a problem, considering he now had her tolerance of said alcohol, but the Hinata House appeared to be dry. Keitaro got up and stretched both arms above his head lazily as he walked through the hallways, trying to find something to do that would not involve wrestling with Su, the temptation of Kitsune's body, or reminding him of alcohol.  
  
"OUCH!" a loud cry echoed throughout the house, a cry that Keitaro recognized. It was the sound of his former body in pain. Keitaro quickly rounded the corner and opened the door to his old room by a slight crack, the image within was. strange to say the least. Kistune in his former body was laying face down on his futon and Motoko was giving her a massage. "AIEE!" Kitsune wailed again in pain as Motoko drove her palms deep into Keitaro's back.  
  
"You are unusually tense today, Urashima," Motoko observed as she continued the massage. Frustrated and slightly jealous, Keitaro walked away from the door.  
  
'She only gave me a massage when she thought I was going to kill myself,' Keitaro thought gloomily. 'Ok, her massages hurt like hell, but still: What is Kitsune doing in my body that deserves a massage from Motoko?' Frustrated, Keitaro decided he should just give into the need for alcohol... but where to find some?  
  
"Where you going, Kitsune?" Su asked as she hung upside down from the ceiling.  
  
"Just going out for a few hours," Keitaro answered.  
  
"Good! Just like always!" Su said happily.  
  
"Well, be a good girl, all right?" Keitaro said patronizingly as he pulled on Kitsune's tennis shoes.  
  
"Alrighty, Kitsune!" Su replied joyfully while eating a half-rotten banana.  
  
***  
  
It was long walk, but Keitaro finally came across a bar where he hoped no one would recognize Kitsune, and stepped inside. Exhausted from his stroll, Keitaro plopped onto a barstool. Immediately, several men began chatting animatedly about the new arrival and Keitaro rolled his eyes. Almost instantly, a small bottle of sake was poured into a cup in front of Keitaro.  
  
"Wait, I didn't order yet," Keitaro objected, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.  
  
"On the house. Courtesy of the gentleman to your right," the barkeep explained. Keitaro turned and saw the rather charitable 'gentleman'. He looked to be around 24 with short, light brown hair, leering brown eyes and a brown sweatshirt.  
  
"Hello gorgeous," the guy said with an easy grin.  
  
"Umm, hello," Keitaro replied, nervously as he reached into his pocket and withdrew Kitsune's wallet. "Thanks for the drink and all, but I can cover it, see?" However, as soon as Keitaro opened Kitsune's wallet, the derelict emptiness within revealed itself, and Keitaro meekly tucked the wallet back into his pocket. "Well, I guess you could buy me just one." 


	5. Regrets and Self Images

IChapter 5:  
  
Regrets and Self Images  
  
It was midnight and Keitaro clumsily walked and giggled, with much help from the very kind man who volunteered to buy so many drinks.  
  
Four A.M. always seemed like a dismal time. A time when only those with self pity and regret would stay awake. It was at 4 a.m. that Keitaro slowly waddled back into the Hinata House. The hours before coming home were a blur of drinking games, karaoke antics, and fighting off an extremely amorous benefactor. In the end, Keitaro felt nothing but a hangover and a dash of self-humiliation.  
  
'Damn, I don't remember half of what happened,' the confused boy thought as he ran his hand on his seething stomach. The contents of sake and whatever the heck was served as food at that bar were long gone after a thorough purging two blocks back, yet Keitaro felt Kitsune's stomach still objecting to whatever treatment it got in the lost hours. The cool wooden floors were a welcome change of texture for Keitaro's bare feet; he'd lost Kitsune's footwear somewhere the night before. A cool breeze blew in from an air conditioner and over Keitaro's bare legs. Shivering, the boy rubbed both of his arms against each other, holding them against the brown sweatshirt he was wearing.  
  
'I need some coffee, a shower, and mouthwash at the same time,' Keitaro thought gloomily as he ran his tongue over Kitsune's straight, yet somewhat grimy teeth. However, the need for cleanliness was lost under a much greater need - one Keitaro became aware of as he stumbled slightly from drowsiness. Wearily, Keitaro slid the door open to his room and saw his old body sleeping in the futon he once occupied but a few days ago.  
  
'Oh that's right - 'Keitaro thought as he slid the door closed again and staggered the steps to Kitsune's door. But before Keitaro could pull the door open, someone else announced his or her presense.  
  
"Kitsune?" a tired, somewhat ruffled Naru asked from the end of the hallway as she squinted at Keitaro. "Up all night partying again?"  
  
"Hehe, you know me," Keitaro weakly confirmed, "always a party somewhere."  
  
"Kitsune, you shouldn't stay out so late, the other girls get worried," Naru chided as she walked towards Keitaro.  
  
"It couldn't be helped," Keitaro answered docilely. "I really don't plan on it. It just kind of happens."  
  
"I know that," Naru said. "You've been like this ever since high school. You don't have to keep this image anymore."  
  
"What someone expects of you is hard to escape," Keitaro pointed out wryly. "I'm stuck in this role, so I might as well enjoy it." Another half- truth, but ironically realistic.  
  
"It's just that you're my closest friend and all," Naru continued, her head turned to the side to try and hide her worried expression. "I'd hate to see something bad happen to you." Keitaro wasn't sure why, but he stepped up to Naru and enclosed the shorter girl in a hug. Naru returned the hug and the warmth of their bodies against each other was reassuring to both.  
  
'Mmm, this feels nice,' Keitaro thought, his mind dazed from the remnants of a hangover and serious sleep deprivation. After what seemed like an eternity of comfort, Keitaro pulled away from the hug and looked down at Naru's reassured, but still saddened face. Then, for no reason or warning, Keitaro bent down gave Naru a gentle but firm kiss on the lips, forgetting exactly which body he was in. Naru, half awake, let the kiss occur with no resistance.  
  
A few seconds later, Keitaro remembered just who he was and pulled away from the sweet kiss. "Good night," Keitaro nervously said.  
  
"G-goodnight," Naru, dazed, returned as she walked off to go back to her room.  
  
Keitaro turned around to face the door and sighed, blushing furiously. 'Why did I do that?' he thought. A good tug and the door slid open and the physically spent Keitaro took a few steps into the room, collapsed face first onto the futon and groaned in pain before rolling onto his back. "Darn it, these things always get in the way," Keitaro grumbled as he tried to rub the pain of his new, recently squished breasts. 'I should stop this,' the boy thought as the pain quickly subsided yet continued rubbing.  
  
The decision on weather or not to stop was made for Keitaro as Kitsune's body quickly fell into the realm of unconsciousness.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune woke up just as the sun was peeking over the horizon and dreaded the day ahead with the instinct of a hunted man. 'How the hell does this guy survive like this?' Kitsune asked herself as she got dressed and ready for the day ahead; the feeling of impending doom lurked as she slid the door open and stepped out in the hall. But something was strange this morning of day: the floors were clean.  
  
Kitsune headed towards the unoccupied hot springs, confused. The entire area was just as clean as she left it the day before. A short jog then over to the kitchen then revealed breakfast was already simmering under the careful eye of Shinobu.  
  
"Good morning, sempai!" Shinobu greeted brightly. "Breakfast will be ready in a few minutes." The young girl maneuvered around the kitchen like a skilled chef, her careful eye on every simmering pot and pan.  
  
Kitsune just stared in wonder, and then remembered that Keitaro didn't spend the majority of EVERY day doing his chores, but usually spread them out over the week while squeezing in time to study. However, during the summer and with no real need to cramp for the entrance exams, Kitsune realized that she gave the appearance of laziness around the others, which in turn made Motoko work her like a horse. Three days straight of chores left the Hinata virtually spotless, and it would stay that way for at least the course of a day, maybe two if she were lucky. and Su didn't break out another mecha-tama.  
  
Shinobu, though, noticed Kitsune's wariness at the door. "Do you want to help me, sempai?" the young girl asked sweetly.  
  
"No, that's all right, I was just thinking. I'll just get the others," Kitsune replied and turned around to walk out of the kitchen.  
  
"All right, but I think Kitsune should get some more rest," Shinobu requested. "She came home awfully late and it is summer, so I think it would be okay if she slept in a little bit."  
  
"I guess," Kitsune said sourly.  
  
***  
  
Breakfast quickly ended and Kitsune washed the dishes with much needed assistance from Shinobu. Kistune sat on the couch and wondered what meaningless task she could undertake to appear busy in the watchful eyes of Motoko, she glanced at the kendo girl and saw a small blush appear on her cheeks as she quickly turned her head away.  
  
"What is it, Urashima?" Motoko asked pointedly. The fear of agitating Motoko quickly made the need to do something.  
  
"N-nothing!" Kitsune hurriedly answered. "It's just- I was wondering where you learned to massage."  
  
"We will NOT talk about that," the kendo girl stated, making the words as solid as stone.  
  
Just then, to save Kitsune's life, Naru stepped in and sighed in relief. "There you are!" the longhaired girl said as she grabbed Kitsune's arm. "C'mon, Keitaro, you wanted me to teach you trig, so you're coming with me!" Naru dragged the befuddled Kitsune all the way to her room and plopped the confused girl at the low table. With an air of great authority, Naru sat down on the other side of the table and slid her glasses up her nose, then opened her textbook. Naru noticed Kitsune still not moving and prodded him with a pencil. "What's wrong, Keitaro?"  
  
"Nothing, nothing at all!" Kitsune stammered as she opened up the trig book. "This page, right?"  
  
Naru just sighed wearily. "Yes, that page. Listen Keitaro, we still have a few weeks before prep. school begins again. We could just blow off the rest of the day."  
  
"That sounds like fun!" Kitsune agreed with a grin. "So where do you want to go?"  
  
"How about bowling?" Naru suggested. Before Kitsune could reply, however, the door slid open, and Motoko, Shinobu, and Su fell down to the floor in a pile.  
  
"Bowling! Is it delicious?" Su asked with a happy smile. Naru exhaled in defeat.  
  
***  
  
"STRIKE!" Su yelled in jubilation and pumped her fist in victory. Everyone else, however, sweat-dropped and looked at the strange foreign girl.  
  
"Su-chan," Naru said, "not many bowl with a bazooka."  
  
"Oh, this little thing?" Su said innocently as she slung the massive cannon over her deceptively slender shoulder.  
  
Kitsune felt his perpetual stress headache returning and reached a hand out to order a pitcher of beer when Motoko grabbed her arm. "Urashima, not in front of Su and Shinobu," the kendo girl warned, serious despite the fact that her traditional garb had been replaced by a t-shirt and a pair of shorts.  
  
"My turn," Shinobu volunteered bravely as she stood up and picked up a smaller bowling ball. The cautious girl slowly walked towards the line and released the ball. Slowly, but surely, the ball rolled towards the pins and knocked down eight of them. "Yay!" Shinbou squealed in childish delight, jumping up and clapping before remembering herself.  
  
"That was a very good roll, Shinobu-chan!" Naru congratulated. "It's your turn now, Keitaro."  
  
"Thanks," Kitsune said as she stood up and picked one of the heavier balls. 'Bowling with the group isn't bad I suppose,' the transformed girl thought.  
  
***  
  
The evening steadily rolled on and the Hinata group returned back home after endless frames and pizza. "STRIKE!" Su announced aloud once again as she hung off Motoko's back, full on endorphins and junk-food.  
  
"I hope we didn't stay out too late," Shinobu murmured docilely as she walked lazily to her room.  
  
'Oh well, another evening of studying lost,' Naru thought with a sigh. "Well, I'm heading to bed," the longhaired girl announced as she trudged up the stairs.  
  
"I too have to bid a good evening," Motoko responded as she went her own separate way, Suu still hanging on her back, "good night everyone."  
  
Kitsune, now alone, walked over to her old room and slid the door to see Keitaro still snoozing away in her old body. "You have no idea how lucky you are," Konno Mitsune said to the sleeping Keitaro, and then slid the door shut.  
  
***  
  
Day five slowly crept into Hinata house, the sunlight shone brilliantly over Keitaro's eyes, forcing the slumbering boy turned girl to awaken with a groan. "Is it morning already?" Keitaro was unaware that a full 24 hours had passed as he slumbered. Weakly, this disoriented boy stood up and stretched his tired muscles, feeling the different parts of his new body still shifting under the stretching. 'I'll never get used to that,' Keitaro thought, then added, 'but I must admit it does feel kinda nice.'  
  
After a few more, slow, luxurious, cat stretches, Keitaro's stomach rumbled in abject hunger. "In just a bit," Keitaro said as he patted his new toned abs. First thing on Keitaro's priority list was a nice, solid cleansing.  
  
Minutes later, a still hungry, but considerably cleaner Keitaro sank into the hot springs, feeling the warm water envelope his tired female flesh, awakening and warming the skin.  
  
'Another plus - not that I'd wanna STAY this way,' Keitaro thought. A moment later, the door slid open and Motoko and Naru stepped out and started cleaning themselves off. 'Did she remember? Was it just a dream?' Keitaro thought nervously as he looked at Naru's face. Naru made brief eye contact with Keitaro and quickly looked away with a heavy blush. 'Whoops, guess it really happened,' Keitaro thought with a blush of his own, having prayed through his drunken stupor that it was a pleasant, if bizarre dream.  
  
The two girls quickly joined Keitaro in the springs, although Naru still seemed a bit shy of comfortable, and Keitaro, a bit more sure of his control, didn't try to look away from them while keeping his eyes fixed firmly on their faces. Needless to say, his focus slipped occasionally, but for the majority of his bath, his eyes stayed on target.  
  
"Honestly, Kitsune," Motoko announced out of nowhere and she relaxed in the springs, "I cannot comprehend where your figure comes from, especially after the laziness you've displayed. You slept for a whole day."  
  
Keitaro blinked at that. "A whole day?" he asked. 'Surely I didn't sleep for a whole day!' "Well, I was really tired when I got home, that's all," Keitaro answered himself a moment later. "In fact, I hardly remember getting home. Besides, I get some exercises in."  
  
Naru visibly relaxed when she heard who she thought was Kitsune say that. "Well, Motoko-chan's right, Kitsune," Naru asserted, meeting her eyes. "It's not good for you to be drinking and sleeping all the time."  
  
"I'll try to tone it down," Keitaro said to reassure the girls, though he had no control over what the true owner of the body.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune anxiously awaited Keitaro's return in her old room. A friendly exchange between the three other girls could be heard from outside the room, Keitaro seemingly enjoying his position as confidant and free pass to the hot springs. The conversation died down as the two girls went their separate ways back to their rooms and Keitaro opened the door.  
  
"How was your nap?" Kitsune asked wryly, looking Keitaro, who was wearing her body and nothing more than a towel. Keitaro quickly closed the door to avoid anyone seeing them both together.  
  
"Fine I guess," Keitaro answered nervously. "Look, I need to get dressed."  
  
"Ain't nothing I haven't seen before, or owned for that matter," Kitsune pointed out.  
  
"I'm still nervous being alone with this naked body, much less dressing in front of anyone with it," Keitaro pointed out.  
  
"So you've seen it naked a few times, eh?" Kitsune said with a grin and a nudge. "Any good memories?"  
  
"Ye- I mean no, I mean-" Keitaro stammered out.  
  
"Relax," Kitsune said, "I'm not here to give you the 9th in what young guys would do in a hot woman's body. Besides, possession is nine- tenths of the law."  
  
"That's not funny," Keitaro said, alarmed. "Being you is rough. People have a certain expectation of what you act like, not to mention your atrocious drinking habits."  
  
"Oh, it's not nearly as rough as being you," Kitsune rebutted. "I have to do all the chores and if I ever look at one of the other girls the wrong way, they get all mad. My life must seem like a paradise."  
  
"Then why do you drink so much, it's hard wired into your body?" Keitaro asked, point blank.  
  
Kitsune sighed. "You're right. I'm being unfair. People DO expect something out of someone else, and even if my life doesn't seem as harsh as yours, trying to act like me must be hell."  
  
"Grass is always greener," Keitaro mused with an understanding smile. "Anyways, where did you hide that wooden statue?"  
  
"Oh it's at -" Kitsune began.  
  
"Urashima! Tama's in my room again!" Motoko squealed in fear, voice echoing from her room.  
  
"I'll tell you later. Just relax, okay?" Kitsune said as she left the room.  
  
"Okay," Keitaro answered then sighed in frustration as he opened the dresser. "I hope there's at least one T-shirt left to wear."  
  
***  
  
Kitsune rushed up to Motoko's room and saw the Kendo girl still in nothing but a robe, shrieking and standing on a chair. "Ok, where's Tama?" Kitsune asked the frightened warrior girl.  
  
"It's in there!" Motoko shouted, pointing to her closed closet door. Kitsune quietly crept up to the closet, then in a spring-like action slid it open, only to be bombarded by Tama-chan, flying full speed into her face. Off-balance, Kitsune stumbled and hit the legs of the chair that Motoko was standing on and both tumbled down.  
  
Kitsune's vision got dark and she felt something warm and soft against her face, and then heard in her ears an angry yell of "Urashima, you PERVERT! You shall pay for that!" followed by a left hook to the face, sending her spiraling through the roof.  
  
'Forget that, Keitaro DEFINITELY has the harder life,' Kitsune thought bitterly as she sailed into the air. 


	6. Almost Home Free

Chapter 6 Almost Home Free  
  
Day six found Kitsune waking up rather early, a habit she found more and more disgustingly ingrained in this body. 'Only today and tomorrow, then I'm back to my gorgeous self,' the girl thought as she pushed Keitaro's unflattering glasses over the bridge of her borrowed nose.  
  
As she crawled out of bed, the girl cursed the opportunity lost by this exchange, in more ways than one. 'If only this had happened last week,' Kitsune thought with a wry grin, 'then Keitaro would've understood women better, and I would have avoided it entirely. Damn. Oh well, curse his good luck.' The transformed girl shrugged at Keitaro's amazing timing, be it accidental or otherwise and started to dress for the day.  
  
'Motoko wants me to fix that hole in her ceiling, even though she was the one that punched me through it. Damn, it seems I even have Keitaro's impeccable clumsiness,' Kitsune thought on to herself. All this constant housework made it obvious to Kitsune that Keitaro's body was not as frail as one would expect at first glance. In fact, she would venture Keitaro's body had nearly zero body fat, but was entirely muscle. The thought of bodies immediately turned back to her old form and Keitaro, who was in it. 'Oh geez, I bet that numbskull doesn't realize I exercise daily. I guess no real damage from just a few days, but he needs to realize my body isn't all just peepshows and feel-for-alls.'  
  
***  
  
Half an hour later, Keitaro woke up, his delight in spending the day relaxing in luxury tempered by the realization that he would be back to normal the day after tomorrow. 'I'd be scared as hell if not for Seta- san's research,' Keitaro thought with great relief. Moments later, a sheet of paper slipped through the side of the bedroom door and Keitaro watched the paper sail gracefully through the air and land inches in from his feet. 'Hmm, what's this?' Keitaro pondered as he picked the sheet up. 'What the heck?! She's gotta be kidding!'  
  
The sheet of paper read like a gym guru's paradise with an extra note from Kitsune on the bottom, which read: Hey it's only fair since I did your chores.  
  
Keitaro sighed in defeat even before the argument could even begin. Resigned to his role, the transformed boy laid back down on the futon and began performing the insane amount of crunches the paper instructed.  
  
***  
  
Two hours later, Keitaro stepped outside of Kitsune's room, a thin film of sweat illuminating his borrowed skin, wearing a sweat drenched T- shirt and shorts, with a towel hanging from his neck. Nervously, Keitaro turned his head and saw Kitsune looking at him with his old eyes.  
  
"Those exercises should've only taken an hour," Kitsune pointed out.  
  
"Umm, well, you see," Keitaro stammered.  
  
"Fine fine, I understand. Just don't do that too much or you'll make me go blind," Kitsune said with a wink. "Now you really should bathe. I have a hole in the roof I need to finish patching."  
  
"Good luck," Keitaro said.  
  
"By the way, the stuff in the top drawer won't kill you, if you're that curious," Kitsune added as she retreated up the stairs.  
  
"I know that," Keitaro answered muttered, a blush staining his cheeks, "but maybe I don't want to go blind."  
  
***  
  
*Thump* another nail driven in. *Thump*, and yet another. Kitsune sat atop the Hinata house, still repairing the hole from the day before. 'Keitaro is one hell of a carpenter, I'll give him that,' Kitsune thought in appreciation as she picked up anther plank of wood and tried to do a somewhat serviceable job. 'I just hope it doesn't rain, or poor Motoko-chan will be performing a wet t-shirt contest.' The thought of the poor, uptight kendo girl in such a circumstance was utterly hilarious to Kitsune as she finished off the repairs.  
  
Satisfied with her work, Kitsune stood up and dusted off her hands. "Well, that is that," the girl said as she picked up the tool kit and the spare lumber. Two steps towards the ladder and Kitsune felt the roof groan under the stress. "Damn. Ok, got to do this carefully," the girl said, nervous in the fact that she didn't want to repair ANOTHER hole. "Ok, I think it's safe this way," the girl mused as she took a step in the supposedly safe direction. The roof groaned even louder. "Hmm, this will be tricky."  
  
***  
  
Motoko ran a brush through her long hair, looking at herself in the mirror with a sense of both pride and dread. Just as the other girls suggested, she was becoming more and more beautiful. Being beautiful, however, brought with it more trouble than she was ready for, not to mention as she grew, her body kept becoming more and more feminine, making the art of the sword increasingly challenging.  
  
Fortunately, one thing Motoko did like was a challenge, shrugging, Motoko started to remove her sleeping robes to dress into her usual kendo garb. At that moment, a loud, audible *creak* made itself known from the ceiling. Puzzled, Motoko looked up and saw the ceiling starting to crack. Seconds later, Kitsune, in Keitaro's body, fell through the creaking roof and on top of the partially nude kendo-girl, her hands resting on the sword woman's budding assets.  
  
"Urashima, you PERVERT!" rang out followed by a large gust of wind and yet another hole in the roof.  
  
***  
  
Keitaro leaned against a wall in Kitsune's room and heard the commotion with a wince. 'I really need to fix the whole roof someday,' he mused. It was also a good thing that the baths were unoccupied that day, or Keitaro would've had some more problems with the situation. Not that he would object at this point. Naru took Su and Shinobu out for ice cream and Motoko would most likely be furiously practicing her kendo on the balcony.  
  
The summer days certainly felt good and Keitaro could certainly appreciate the impromptu vacation of Kitsune's body. 'This is actually a nice break,' Keitaro mused. 'Not many can say they became the 'bad girl' for the summer time.'  
  
Just then, a familiar, loud horn honking could be heard in the distance and Keitaro knew Seta was paying a visit. A loud metallic crash echoed through the halls and Keitaro quickly leapt out of Kitsune's room, to come face to face with a cloud of dust. With wings on his feet, Keitaro ran down the hallway and met up with a still bruised, but mostly recovered Kitsune in front of Seta's van in the living room. "What's he doing now?" Keitaro asked.  
  
"How should I know? I just got here," Kitsune answered. Seconds later, Seta crawled out of the driver's side window.  
  
"Ah good, I need to talk to you two," Seta said with a wide grin.  
  
***  
  
The two transformed young adults and one helplessly [adorably] clueless professor sat around a table. "This is very good tea, thank you Kitsune!" Seta said with a smile.  
  
"Actually, Seta-san, I made it," Keitaro volunteered.  
  
"Right, that's what I - oh that's right!" Seta exclaimed as he belatedly remembered the situation. "The reason for my visit is to explain a little more about the statues and the change."  
  
"We will switch back tomorrow, right?" Kitsune asked, point blank.  
  
"Oh certainly!" Seta answered. "That is if no one else takes the male statue that you took originally Kitsune. If both statues are still intact by tomorrow, you'll be back to normal."  
  
"What happens if someone takes the stolen statue?" Keitaro asked, worried.  
  
"Well, Hinata is primarily populated by women, so if another woman takes the male statue, on the seventh night, you Keitaro, will be placed in that woman's body and Kitsune will return to her old body."  
  
Keitaro turned as white as a sheet at that announcement. "What if one of them is destroyed?" Kitsune asked, equally peaky.  
  
"Oh, then you two will be stuck that way forever," Seta said with a carefree smile as he sipped his tea. The swapped residents looked at each other with wide nervous eyes. "But I'm sure such an occurrence will not happen, because the magic protects the statues from harm in the first 6 days. It's on the 7th day that the statues are vulnerable."  
  
"Ok, protect the statues with our lives tomorrow, all right Kitsune?" Keitaro said. "Now what about this drinking habit?"  
  
"Ah yes, the traits," Seta said as he stroked his chin with his forefinger. "Well, no need to worry. The traits stay with the body, much like the sparkplugs stay in a car, even if the drivers change."  
  
"That's a relief," Kistune said. "I seem to have your clumsiness in this body."  
  
"I also seem to have your lack of inhibitions," Keitaro countered.  
  
"Ooh, that's low," Kitsune pointed out. "Besides, I said you could mess around once, but -"  
  
"Wait a minute," Seta interrupted. "So you two experimented with your new bodies?"  
  
"Umm, yes," Keitaro reluctantly confessed.  
  
"Well, just a little of this," Kitsune shamelessly admitted.  
  
Immediately, Seta took out his notepad and a pen. "Tell me, how does it compare versus your original form!" the professor eagerly asked.  
  
"2,000 yen," Kitsune said as she held out her hand. "Hey, research subjects get paid."  
  
"Umm, well, I think that's a private matter," Keitaro hurriedly said as he started to blush a deep tomato red.  
  
Kitsune sighed as the uncomfortable boy. "All right, I guess I'll hold out too."  
  
"But, but, the interest in science!" Seta pleaded, stammering in his haste for knowledge. The pair glared at him, "All right." He conceded, "Well, I guess the least I can do is help clean up the living room."  
  
***  
  
Kitsune was once again on the roof, nailing away more wood panels and supports. This time, however, she had a little help from Keitaro. "You see, these cross sections keep everything nice and strong," Keitaro explained.  
  
"You sure are an impressive carpenter," Kitsune admitted.  
  
"Oh, everything I know about home repair I learned from living here," Keitaro explained.  
  
"Us girls must be a real pain to you," Kitsune said. "I'm sorry about that."  
  
"Oh don't worry! Living here has been the most fun I've had in my life!" Keitaro announced reassuringly.  
  
"Well, I'm glad," Kitsune said as she continued hammering. Minutes later, the roof was patched up and night was descending at the Hinata. "Well, have a good last day," Kitsune said.  
  
"You too," Keitaro returned uncomfortably.  
  
"Oh by the way," Kitsune added slyly as she slipped off the roof, "It may be the last day tomorrow, but that doesn't mean you can go at it like the world's gonna end. I don't want to wake up sore two days from now."  
  
"Do you always think about that?" Keitaro asked with a wince.  
  
"Yes, yes I do," Kitsune answered with a grin.  
  
***  
  
The next day, the final day, rose slowly, majestically with the sun. The first few hours of sunlight went onward and both Keitaro and Kitsune were left snoozing in their respective rooms.  
  
Around noon, Keitaro awoke from his slumber with a groggy sigh. With a yawn, he pondered returning to his old sleeping habits. 'I'll sure miss sleeping in, and the baths' the boy thought woefully, 'and, maybe, I might miss having breasts just a TEENSY bit, even if they get in the way of everything.'  
  
Lazily, Keitaro got out of bed and walked out into the hallway to see Shinobu. "Hey Shinobu, when's breakfast going to be ready?" the transformed boy asked.  
  
"Breakfast?" Shinobu pondered. "Kitsune, that was 3 hours ago."  
  
'Damn, I must've overslept,' Keitaro thought. "Well, when's lunch?"  
  
"Lunch is almost finished," Shinobu explained, turning back to chopping vegetables. "I just came out here to tell you." With that, Keitaro joined everyone else for lunch.  
  
***  
  
As lunch drew to a close, everyone attended their separate lives, and Kitsune eagerly grabbed Keitaro by the arm. "Now listen," Kitsune began, "we have to guard those statues with our lives because, in some ways, we ARE those statues!"  
  
Just then, Kitsune opened the door to Keitaro's room and the sight before the two of them sent immediate horror into their spines. Kaolla Su was juggling the female statue with a chainsaw.  
  
"Hello!" Su said excitedly. "I can almost do this blindfolded!"  
  
"Oh god no!" Kitsune screamed as she leapt and grabbed the wooden statue, inadvertently pushing Su to the side. Kitsune landed on the ground, statue in her hands and the chainsaw landing, blade first, only a foot away from the statue, and only inches away from Kitsune's new crotch. "I think I'm going to be sick!"  
  
***  
  
After a rather tiring day of protecting the female statue, the day was slowly winding down. Once the pair were 100 percent certain that the female statue was safe, Keitaro finally asked the big question. "So where did you hide that male statue?" the transformed boy asked.  
  
"Wanna see?" Kitsune said with a grin. "Well, follow me." Kitsune lead Keitaro into her room and started to clear off a section to reveal the tatami mat below. "I knew you'd be looking for it, so as a gag, if I remember correctly, hid it here." Kitsune pulled off the tatami mat to see the hollowed out floor below, but to both their surprise, the hollowed section was empty, save for a few pornographic magazines with the female reader in mind. "Wait, did I hide it there or somewhere else?" Kitsune pondered.  
  
"YOU DON'T KNOW?" Keitaro shrieked, revolted and horrified at the same time.  
  
"Relax, if I can't find it, no one else can, so we'll swap back and everything'll be right as rain," Kitsune reasoned.  
  
"Well, I hope so," Keitaro said with a sigh.  
  
***  
  
Night descended on the Hinata and Keitaro lay nervously in his bed. Nothing could calm him, not even the prospect of getting one final good memory of Kitsune's body could shake the fear that held his spirits. 'I hope we swap back.'  
  
***  
  
Motoko looked at the latest test target she acquired earlier that day. She held it up approvingly. 'This will slice beautifully tomorrow,' the swordswoman thought as she went to bed.  
  
***  
  
Naru looked at the object of interest she found earlier that day. 'Maybe Seta-san can tell me more about it,' the myopic girl thought wistfully, hugging the object to her. 'Or maybe I should give it to Keitaro as a friendship present.'  
  
***  
  
Su carried the large object into her tropical room and grinned. "Perfect! Works wonders with the décor!"  
  
***  
  
Kitsune looked up at the ceiling and sighed. "Boy, I hope none of the other girls found that male statue," the girl said aloud. "even if it'll do them all a bit of good." 


	7. epilogue

Identity Crisis  
  
Aftermath  
  
Morning rose on the Hinata and Kitsune woke up to a strange but familiar feeling. Immediately, Kitsune looked down and sighed in relief. 'Yes!' the girl thought triumphantly, 'I got my body back!' Practically skipping with joy, Kitsune got dressed and stepped outside her room.  
  
At that moment, however, four separate screams echoed throughout the Hinata. 'Oh no!' Kitsune thought as she first rushed to Keitaro's room.  
  
"Keitaro, is that you?" Kitsune shouted hurridly as she slid open the door. Keitaro, dressed only in his boxers and holding his foot looked up at Kitsune.  
  
"Of course its me! I just stubbed my toe is all!" the boy shouted. "I just woke up weird, that's all, I guess."  
  
Kitsune, not entirely sure of Keitaro's state of being, decided to investigate the other screams. Quickly, she vaulted up the hole in Keitaro's room to Naru's. "Naru, are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine!" the longhaired girl said. "I just bumped my knee against the table.  
  
Sighing, Motoko's screams echoed through the Hinata yet again and Kitsune sprung out and ran as fast as she could to Motoko's room.  
  
"Motoko-chan, are you alright?!" Kitsune asked as she slid the door open. Inside, Motoko in her half pulled sleeping robes standing on a chair from a flying Tama-chan.  
  
"Of course I'm not alright!" Motoko shouted. "This turtle's driving me batty!" Another exasperated sigh and Suu's screams echoed the Hinata.  
  
Another leaping vault and Kitsune arrived at Suu's room and slid the door open, to see a grinning Su in her fuku. "Why are you screaming, Su?" Kitsune asked.  
  
"Because everyone else is and it sounds like fun!" the foreign girl said with a grin.  
  
***  
  
The day progressed normally as if nothing ever happened. Kitsune listened as Keitaro and Naru studied with a small twinge of regret. "I guess it's for the best," Kitsune mused.  
  
Shrugging, Kitsune stood up and decided to walk around the Hinata to see how the other girls were. She walked up to the second floor to see Motoko nervously gripping her sword while hanging a small piece of raw lumber from the ceiling. "What's the matter, Motoko-chan?" Kitsune asked as she walked up behind the nervous sword woman.  
  
"AIEE!" Motoko screamed nervously as she haphazardly cut the wood. "Don't do that when I'm concentrating!"  
  
Kitsune looked at the nervous Motoko, her kendo garb a little loose around the shoulders. "Are you alright?" Kitsune asked.  
  
"I'm fine, I'm fine," Motoko repeated as she caught her breath. "Tama just flew into my shirt a minute ago."  
  
"Okaaay," Kitsune said suspiciously, but continued on her walk. Next, Kitsune stopped at Su's room. Su was hanging on a new, giant palmtree, looking around the ground curiously. "Whatcha doing, Su?"  
  
"Looking for mines!" Su said.  
  
"Mines? Is this a new game?" Kitsune asked as she kicked a stone into the room, only to watch an explosion follow. "You don't remember where you placed the mines?"  
  
"Was I supposed to?" Su asked as she hung upside down on the tree by her legs.  
  
***  
  
Kitsune felt extremely unsure of what happened to everyone in the house. Keitaro could be back in his own body or have swapped with any of them, it seems. Just to be sure, she decided on one more stop: Naru's room. Stretching her arms above her head, Kitsune walked over to Naru's door and slid it open to see the two Todai hopefuls studying with a somewhat antique looking tea cup in the center of the table  
  
"Hey you two, how's everything?" Kitsune asked.  
  
"Fine," Naru answered.  
  
"Pretty good I guess," Keitaro replied. Kitsune watched the two study for a minute and decided everything was probably back in its place and decided to walk back to her room. As Konno Mitsune took the first few steps away from the open door she heard something she never thought she'd ever hear. "-and that's how you do that," Keitaro finished explaining.  
  
"Oh, I would have never figured that!" Naru exclaimed.  
  
A big vein popped up on Kitsune's forehead but she kept on walking away. 'I will NOT try to figure this out, I will just assume Keitaro is in his old body and get something stiff and strong to drink,' the girl thought to herself.  
  
***  
  
Author's Notes:  
  
Yes, a pleasant end to the Identity Crisis! Now to thank those that made this story possible:  
  
First to thank is the awesome beta Toonfreak. MindKore helped A LOT with the story, as did Tuxedo Jack. KDH2KY helped quite a bit too(and his site www.angelfire.com/anime5/myfics5/will host the uncensored version of the story later on, along with possible ALTERNATE ENDINGS!) 


End file.
